a/n: thank you all for waiting for this update. And a special thanks to Marefian02, The Groove and especially Acnelli for being so supportive in the reviews.
This chapter has been broken into two because I am not yet satisfied with the next bit yet, I'll try updating it at the earliest.
Hope you enjoy this.
Also, as I have mentioned before, this story has expanded a lot from its V1 and uploading that old draft now will not help with the continuity.

please ignore typos- this is unedited. I will try reworking when I have some more time.

Chapter 33: The Wait

It was a cold, dreary morning and Harry was still sore all over when he woke up to his wand buzzing frantically on the bedside table. Groaning, he picked it up and flicked- wispy vapours materialised which swirled around to shape themselves into words.

"Get your arse here, Harry. We've got work to do."

"Wanker," he grumbled under his breath and turned around, arranging the quilt snuggly over them and wrapping an arm around Ginny's waist. He buried his face in her nape, soaking in her scent and warmth, wishing he could take a few days off to stay with her.

Ginny turned a smidge and smiled, but she looked tired and seemed to have been up for a while.

"You don't have any training, do you?" he asked, voice still groggy, propping his head on his arm and pulling her closer to himself. "Why are you up so early?"

"Is everything okay with him?" she asked without a preamble and Harry stifled a groan and collapsed back onto his pillow. It would have been a surprise if Ginny had ignored what she saw the previous night. Once they returned home, she had hurriedly arranged for the wide assortment of ingredients she sent to Ron's but to be very honest, Harry wasn't sure if Hermione would have stayed long enough for them to prepare and share a meal. Not that he didn't hope for it. It was a miracle Ginny hadn't inquired about Ron's violent behaviour right away, but he had managed to deviate her attention to more pleasurable things and hoped against hope that she wouldn't bring it up; he could neither lie to her nor break his promise to Ron.

"He has been a little-" he paused, searching for a word that would tone down the effect, "-different since he's back."

Ginny exhaled soundly, looked away from his face to gaze at the ceiling. "He has always been the one to rely on his punches rather than his wand, even when we were little and the twins bothered him. But-" she bit her lower lip, exhaled and turned around to meet his eyes, looking fearful. At that moment he realised that it was a relief that the family wasn't aware of Ron's ordeal during the mission. "I've never seen him that way, Harry," she admitted. For a while, I was worried he'd -" she sucked in a breath and looked away.

"Kill them?" he provided softly, grabbing her hand in his, entwining their fingers.

"Would he?" she asked, barely hiding the fear. "What on earth has he been through that has broken him so much?"

He bit his lip, buying minutes as he searched for an answer he could tell her. "He wouldn't kill anyone- and no, he wasn't working as an assassin. It's just that - the situation of finding Hermione in danger tipped him off that way. Triggered a few of his nightmares, I guess." He brushed a lock of hair away from her face and scooted closer. "I know you are mad at me for coaxing Hermione to ask him- but I was worried we'd lose him altogether, Gin." It wasn't like he didn't feel guilty about the way he had manipulated the situation but this was- for the greater good. He scoffed bitterly to himself. "I know I might have pushed Hermione towards him but, right now, Ron needs her more than he will admit. He is not in a good place and there is no one else who can help him," he finished, wondering if he was being rather selfish, choosing to save Ron at the cost of Hermione's happiness.

"Don't be so hard on yourself," she replied, patting him on the cheek. "Hermione needs him too, y'know," she added. "Her pride won't allow her to admit it to Ron and that's fair enough." She paused, pondering quietly before she spoke again. "I don't know what she shared with Malfoy but from what I've seen, I doubt she was ever actually in love with the bloke. I am not even surprised that she went with Ron last night," she finished with a sad smile before turning around and poking a finger at his chest. "But she has all the right to be mad at him and make him suffer! I still can't believe he broke up because he was jealous of her accomplishments?!" She glared hard at him before her brows scrunched up as she searched his face for hints. "Or he lied," she gasped quietly. "Harry… Ron lied, didn't he?"

He let go of her hand to scratch his head consciously and looked away. Well, technically he hadn't said anything.

"Doesn't make sense at all!" she went on, "Let's assume he knew he'd leave- he should have told her, why would he break her heart that way? And if he knew he was leaving- you'd have known for sure, but you didn't! Nothing adds up. Oh, come on, Harry! You know what happened! Tell me!"

"I can't," he admitted. "That idiot brother of yours made me swear."

"He made you swear? What are you, ten?!"

"I can't tell you," he responded, guilty. "-but don't let him know -"

"Don't let him know what?!" she snapped. "You haven't told me anything!"

"Not even that you guessed that, y'know..."

She glared at him, huffed and looked away. "I hope Hermione hexes him back into the next century for this stunt. Especially if he knew and left without telling her the truth. Worse, if he lied"

"Boy, it's getting late, gotta leave," he added hurriedly, pecked her on the lips and rushed out of the bed. Angry Weasley women were a scary brood.

About ten minutes later, Harry stood on the first step outside the main door, looking around at the bleak morning light. He stifled a yawn, closing the heavy main door shut and pulled his robes tightly around himself, ignoring the steady drizzle as he spun on the spot.

The Auror Department was buzzing with activity despite the early hour. Discarding the heavy robes, he dumped them over Ron's chair as he hurried his way towards their meeting room. The long table was overflowing with scrolls and charts and he soon found the person he was looking for.

"Don't tell me you are leaving now," he warned as he clapped his best mate on his back, nodding a little to acknowledge the rest of the men who surrounded the table.

"I am," Ron replied, before indicating around him, "Not just me, we are."

Harry found three men grinning back at him.

"He told us we could accompany him for the first scan," beamed Robert while Dylan and Mathew grinned next to him. The men looked immensely proud as they turned to Ron, admiration evident on their features.

"When do you leave?" he asked, scanning the detailed map unfurled on the table. Lines, arrows and circles were creating patterns on the old parchment, dividing the forest into sections, indicating the path the Aurors would take to shrink the perimeter down by many miles.

"In an hour."

"We decided we'd do it tonight," Harry countered.

Ron cleared his throat softly and gestured for the other men to leave. Once it was just the two of them he pulled a chair and sat himself down.

"Doesn't it make more sense to get this done while we still have daylight?"

"Sure does, but you should get some rest first," Harry replied as he pulled a chair and took a closer look at his best friend and was pleasantly surprised. For once, Ron looked like he had actually slept. He appeared well-rested, the cuts on his face had healed except for a couple of fading bruises. Harry let out a fake cough to mask his grin. "I'm glad you are taking a team," he stated, "Those three always wanted to accompany you."

"Yeah, I know" Ron grinned sheepishly. "I guess, taking a team will make Her- um- you worry less," he added softly.

"Hah!" snorted Harry as he burst into laughter. "Thanks for the sudden concern for my nerves, mate."

"Shut up," Ron chuckled, scratched the back of his neck, his ears turning red and hurried away only to return shortly carrying two steaming cups of tea.

Harry felt rather happy despite the impending mission. He pulled the map towards himself and flicked his wand on it as another set of arrows formed on the parchment and began forming patterns in green.

Ron placed Harry's mug on the table, sipped on his own as he scrutinized the new markings, making a couple of adjustments.

"I'll follow you in a couple of hours."

"Four should do. Let the team get some rest, it was a long few days" Ron agreed.

"This should work well," Harry indicated the map.

"With some luck, we could even be back by tomorrow," Ron added softly, barely hiding the longing.

…..

The first day, Hermione found herself glancing multiple times at the door of her office, hoping to see Ron burst through any minute. It was impractical. From what she had heard about the situation it was very unlikely that they'd wrap up so soon. But the hours felt rather long and by evening, she realised she had spent most of the day pacing around her office. The anxiety was overbearing and she found herself heaving rather frequently, the strange gnawing in her chest rather pronounced, as the wait grew longer.

Annett looked very relieved when Hermione announced that she'd be calling it a day.

The two hours she spent with her parents was the only respite but then she promised them she'd bring Ron along as soon as he returned as the anxiousness crept back in.

Hermione had barely gotten any work done the entire day and silently thanks her stars for the lull in cases. Back home, she glanced at all the paperwork that needed her attention but couldn't bring herself to worry about them. The silence of the flat made her nerves even more jittery and she retired to bed early hoping sleep would help. She spent most of the night trying to read the book Ron had gifted her. Although immensely fascinating, just as she had expected it to be, for once even a book failed to capture her full attention which remained alert for the softest of sounds as she expected the loud crack of Apparition.

After all, he had promised he'd let her know the first thing when he returned.

The sky had begun to light up the horizon in the east when she finally dozed off for a handful of hours and slept rather poorly, dreaming of snarling werewolves, rugged cliff sides and Ron bleeding and hurt, wandering around in the forest.

The second evening, exhausted and unable to bear it anymore, she Floo called Ginny and invited her over. It was another day of getting very little work done.

Ginny looked paler than usual but more in control as she placed the small basket on the table and pulled out a couple of lunch boxes. "Scones, sandwiches and Treacle Tart," she announced and hurried over to the kitchen. "You look like you could do with some tea," she added while filling up a kettle and putting it for a boil.

Hermione decided she had no strength left to feign indifference. "I have no clue how you do it," she exhaled as she pulled up a chair and collapsed in it, burying her face in her hands.

"I have had more practice than you at being left behind," Ginny smiled sadly. "Eat something," she insisted as the kettle whistled. Finally, she placed a steaming mug in front of Hermione and pulled a chair for herself.

"It was nerve-wracking to be with them at times but this-" Hermione admitted, sighing deeply. The air didn't seem to fill her lungs at all. "This- not knowing their whereabouts- is worse."

"It sure is."

Hermione had pretty much lost her appetite and only realised how hungry she was when Ginny gestured for her to pick up a sandwich.

"Hermione?"

"Hmm?"

"Were you really going to marry Malfoy if - y'know- "

Hermione placed the sandwich back after a single bite. "I was going to…" she admitted slowly. Now that she thought about it, the episode with Draco felt like a lifetime away, she had barely even thought about him in the past couple of weeks, she realised guiltily.

"I know I promised not to ask you again but- you are sure about Ron, right? For your own sake, not your Mum's."

Hermione bit her lower lip and nodded once. "It makes no sense and yet… " she looked Ginny in the eye. "I didn't realise how much I wanted him back, Gin," she replied, before averting her gaze and concentrating on making patterns on the table with her fingertip. "I am still mad at him- at least I want to be… but I guess…" she trailed off, took a sip and found her eyes lingering on the mug. Ron had used this very same one the other day. "I shouldn't have dragged Draco into this mess. I do appreciate he was around but I-I wasn't in the right state of mind to have a relationship." She chuckled sadly, "- I don't think I ever stopped loving Ron," she admitted at last. "Makes me a horrible person for leading Draco on, doesn't it?"

"I want to say serves him right for everything he did and I hate to admit this, but I do feel a little bad for the bloke," Ginny agreed. "It's our fault too. As I said, Harry and I should have been there for you."

"Draco was an escape- I couldn't talk about Ron to him- and perhaps that's how I wanted it. Pretend Ron was never a part of my life."

"Did it help?"

Hermione let out a bitter chuckle. "I hoped it would... But here I am, seven years later, still worried sick about a guy who is just doing me a favour."

"You really think he is just doing you a favour?" Ginny inquired, sipped from her cup and picked up a sandwich without meeting Hermione's gaze. "Even after that evening?" she added softly.

Hermione heaved. It took a while for her to find the strength to put her fears into words. "I have never seen him that way." She looked up at Ginny, hoping for some kind of reassurance that it was nothing out of the ordinary- and perhaps that's how an Auror behaved but Ginny seemed to avert her eyes intentionally.

"Harry tells me he is the best at combat," Ginny replied and paused abruptly.

"Yes, Ron told me he learned it during his training- while he was gone." Ginny's eyes snapped back at her.

"Did he tell you why he left and where he was?"

Hermione nodded once. "He was in an undercover mission in Belgium," she replied, "I didn't probe further- I am not sure if I'm ready to know it all." She exhaled sipping on her cup again.

"Did you stay back for dinner?"

Hermione hurriedly picked up her sandwich and bit into it, hoping that Ginny would miss the blush. "Yes."

"How was the cottage pie?" Ginny snickered.

"It was good," she replied, no longer able to hide her smile.

…...

It took them three days and two nights to sort it all out.

"I'll be back in an hour and sort out the paperwork," Ron announced loudly after he turned the shower off. He shook his head and furiously towel-dried his hair, before wrapping the towel around his waist. Grabbing his wand, Ron recast the glamour charm to hide the ugly scars on his chest and walked out of the shower stall to find the men in various stages of undress.

"Where are you off to?"

Harry was pulling on his jumper and looking rather amusing with his messed up hair and askew glasses. He chuckled, "Not an expert but who pulls on a jumper while wearing glasses? Did you even shower with them? Do you need them to-"

"Stop right there, you bugger," laughed Harry as he ran his fingers through his hair. It didn't help at all. "Why are you in such a rush?"

"Gotta meet someone," he replied softly as he pulled out a pair of pants and his well-worn pair of denim.

"Do I know that someone?" the bloke added in an undertone, snickering.

Ron muttered a 'wanker' under his breath, grabbed a black vest, a checkered shirt and a jacket before pulling on the garments rather hurriedly. "I promised I'd meet her the first thing," he added, however.

Harry seemed to be on the verge of saying something but only beamed and patted him on the back. "No rush for the paperwork. It's all wrapped anyway. Let's do that tomorrow."

…...

"Hello,"

Annett groaned softly to herself and ignored the deep voice, not even bothering to look up. If it wasn't enough that her boss seemed rather strange of late and she had a mountain load of work already trying to keep Hermione's calendar free, Annett also had to deal with a batch load of people expecting to meet Hermione without an appointment. It was seven in the evening already and she was looking forward to wrapping everything up and meet her friends at the Leaky.

"I'm sorry she's not meeting anyone," she replied in an off-hand sort of way as she forced a couple more scrolls in the case and clasped it shut with difficulty.

"She might make an exception."

She rolled her eyes, grabbed the stack of empty but labelled envelopes, picked up the first letter and folded it neatly. Who on earth did the guy think he was, anyway? Finally, she stood up, not bothering to hide her annoyance. But one look at the visitor and she let out an audible gasp.

Oh, sweet Merlin…

Auror Weasley gave her a small lopsided grin and her heart literally skipped a beat. She fervently hoped she wouldn't collapse. That would be really embarrassing.
"I- " she managed and cleared her throat, growing red in the face. How could she lose her voice at the sight of him?! How was he so ruggedly handsome despite all the cuts and scratches on his face? Most importantly, the pictures did him no justice- those blue eyes were gorgeous...

"Mind asking her if she wants to meet me?" he inquired, his eyes twinkling in mirth but not in a snobbish way. He seemed genuinely friendly and nice, not at all how that cow Skeeter made him out to be in her articles.

"She's not in," she managed, tucking a curl behind her ear. "Went home early." He was so tall too! Why was her face so hot? She wasn't smiling like an idiot, was she?!

"Oh," he replied, looking concerned. "Hope she's fine."

"Not sure, did look a little anxious the past few days," she added. Would anyone believe her if she told them that the Auror Ron Weasley actually stood in front of her and spoke to her?! Hold on, this wasn't a glorious dream, was it?

"Anyways, thanks-" he paused, looked at the nameplate and met her gaze. "Annett, right? It was nice meeting you."

As he turned and walked away, she collapsed back on her chair before covering her face in her hands and releasing a long pent-up squeal.

…..

As she stood under the showerhead, her palms flat against the tiles for support, Hermione wondered how long she'd be able to hold on. It had taken her a while to realise that what she feared was him taking years to come back- or perhaps not return at all.

"No!" she gasped quietly as she hurriedly turned off the shower and grabbed one towel to wrap around her head before grabbing the other to pat herself dry. Surely this was normal, she reminded herself again. And he wasn't alone. There was a full team with him this time. She heaved again as she wrapped the towel snugly around herself and patted her chest wondering when she'd be able to breathe normally again.

The room was draughty as she stepped out of the bath and shivered, looking around for her wand when there was a loud clap in the living room.

"RON?" she cried and ran outside.

….

He had barely found his footing when he heard her call him out and suddenly she was running towards him, clad in nothing but a towel around her torso and one twirled on her head like a strange headdress. He vaguely registered the chill in the room as his eyes soaked in the sight of Hermione dashing towards him, the towel wrapped around her head fell off, giving life to the mad head of curls that he loved so much. He averted his gaze for a moment to reign in his shuddering heart but she crashed onto him and flung her arms around his neck, her hair damp and fragrant. And before he could stop himself he wrapped his arms around her and picked her up, releasing a blissful sigh as she buried her face in his chest.

Yes, she was wet and clad in just a towel and triggered the crazy want he tried his best to bury deep within- but more than that, it was the realisation that she had been waiting for him, worried about him enough to run into his arms and allow him to hold her. He choked back a sob at the thought- perhaps he would be able to return where he belonged after all...

He lowered her after many blissful days and brushed aside a lock of hair to tuck it behind her ear. She was flushed red and clutching the towel at her chest. Ron looked away, pulled out his want to cast a warming charm in the room. He took off his jacket and wrapped it around her shoulder, and again, on instinct cupped her face and tilted it up to observe her better. Her wet curls were soft and dripped on her shoulder, a tinge of red covered the tip of her nose and cheeks but there were bags under her eyes.

He ran the pad of his thumbs across her cheeks."Why do you look so tired? Haven't you been sleeping?"

She closed her eyes, placed her palm over his and chuckled before releasing a sigh. "You're back,' she exhaled as if convincing herself before opening her eyes to meet his gaze. "I was worried I might be dreaming."

He swallowed thickly, worried if he was the one imagining her. But there she was, running her thumb over his hand before she wrapped her fingers around his wrists and he wanted to tell her not to make it so hard for him to keep his word. He simply wanted to soak in every minute, every gesture and every fragrance. Finally, he now had a reason to come back alive after a mission.

"Go change, you'll fall sick." he managed thickly, pulling his hand away and breathing deeply to keep his head straight.

She looked down at herself, realising for the first time perhaps that she was standing in a towel and just his jacket and turned crimson. She nodded once and turned, taking a few steps before stopping midstep.

"You won't leave, will you?"

"Not until you want me to," he promised.

…..